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Osaka Insider Guidebook Now Available on Amazon.com!
A quick follow-up to the previous post: Osaka Insider: A Travel Guide for Osaka Prefecture is now available on Amazon.com! Credit cards from any country are accepted, of course. It is still available through my online store, as well.
The Osaka Insider Guidebook is Complete! Get Your Copy Today!
After much hard work, I have finally published my guidebook, Osaka Insider: A Travel Guide for Osaka Prefecture!!
This unique guidebook covers sightseeing destinations throughout Osaka Prefecture, both famous and unknown. Written by a Japanese-speaking American expatriate and former long-term resident of Osaka, it offers an unbiased and in-depth look into the best things to see and do in Osaka, whether you are a first-time visitor or local resident. The addition of ramen and okonomiyaki guides, festival and event information, rail and walking maps, general sightseeing information and tips, essays by the author and more make this the single most comprehensive English-language guide on Osaka Prefecture to date. It’s the guidebook that no visitor to Kansai should leave home without. Come to Osaka and discover the best-kept secrets of Kansai!
Currently it’s available through my online store, and also available on Amazon.com. For customers in Japan, you can still purchase it through the American Amazon site even if you have a Japanese credit card–the slowest international shipping option is very affordable, although it will take a little while to arrive (overseas express shipping options are also available). If you happen to live in or visit the Fukuoka area, I would be happy to sign your copy personally.
I have also created a Guidebook Maps page, which was designed to be used in conjunction with this guidebook. This is especially useful if you have internet access during your time in Japan.
One of the biggest motivating factors behind this project was the warm and support and encouragement I have received over the years from Osaka Insider’s readers, and for that I thank all of you. I hope you will consider purchasing Osaka Insider: A Travel Guide for Osaka Prefecture and discovering more of the great things Osaka has to offer!
The Hub Pubs of Osaka
The Hub Ebisubashi branch in Namba
Hub British Pub (英国風ハブ) is a chain of friendly bars where you can meet people, whether you are from Japan or abroad. I have met more people from other countries at the Hub than anywhere else. There is fairly tasty food, as would be expected of a pub, especially the Hub Premium Cheeseburger (comes with fries) and the spinach gnocchi. But most of all, the drinks are good, and they don’t rip you off by using cheap liquor. The long island iced teas are delicious and perfectly balanced, and the original cocktails are superb–I personally like the “Tarantula,” which has quite a kick despite its smooth taste, and the one-liter tower of beer is always fun. Happy hour, which goes until 7:00 pm every day, means cocktails as cheap as 190 yen each, which is probably the lowest price I’ve seen outside of Blue Moon Bar. Hub Pubs are generally open until around 1:00 am on weekdays and 2:00 am on weekends. They can be reserved for private parties, and they often show sports events involving local or Japanese national teams (with soccer being shown most often). Most of all, the atmosphere is casual and relaxed.
Despite being a large chain, the Hub provides consistent quality and good times, and whether you are new in town, looking to meet new people, or just searching to a place to kick back after work, check out on of Osaka’s four branches (two in Namba, one near Shinsaibashi, and one in Umeda’s Chayamachi district).
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